"Two good reporters for the New York Times ... write today that the United States is preparing for send troops across the border into Pakistan in pursuit of the Taliban, Al Qaeda, and any other bad guys they can find. If there’s a worse idea, I don't know what it is. ... Like President Nixon’s decision to expand the war in Vietnam into Cambodia in pursuit of alleged Viet Cong 'sanctuaries' -- a decision that hugely destabilized Cambodia and led to millions of deaths -- a policy of attacking Pakistan would destabilize that country, too, and serve only to push the sanctuaries deeper into Pakistan." [editor's note: Viet Nam/Afghanistan = Cambodia/Pakistan ... the analogy is just frickin' eerie! - SAT] (12/21/10)

"The government and media have colluded to paint the picture of a noble, heroic, flag-waving American enterprise in Afghanistan that is, alas, very far from reality. As the cynic Ambrose Bierce pointedly observed of patriots -- 'the dupe of statesmen; the tool of conquerors.'" (12/20/10)

"Last minute bickering from the Sadrist bloc has delayed voting for the new cabinet for at least one day, but attacks continued without debate. At least two Iraqis were killed and 12 more were wounded, while security forces killed four Libyans accused of planning Christmas Day attacks. Also, Amnesty International has called on Iraq to protect its Christian population." (12/20/10)

"At least 15 Taliban fighters have been killed in a joint operation involving Nato-led International Security Assistance Forces (ISAF) and local government troops in Afghanistan's northern Kunduz province, a local official was quoted as saying in the media on Monday. Four Uzbhek nationals were among those killed in the encounter. According to reports, the joint operation had been launched in response to Sunday's terror strike on a military recruitment center at Kunduz city which left at least 9 people dead." (12/20/10)

"Suspected Islamist militants in northwestern Pakistan near the Afghan border Monday torched two oil tankers carrying fuel for the NATO forces in Afghanistan, official said. The incident took place in Khata Kashta area of Khyber, one of the seven mountainous tribal districts that are known bastions of Taliban and Al Qaeda rebels." (12/20/10)

"A total of 14 Afghan soldiers and national police officers were killed in separate attacks targeting the Afghan National Army on Sunday, officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attacks on its official website, saying the two attacks were coordinated." (12/19/10)

"On the second consecutive day on Friday the US drones targeted three suspected bases of alleged militants in the inaccessible Tirah valley, tehsil Bara of Khyber Agency, killing at least 60 suspected militants including two militant commanders and leaving more than a dozen injured, official sources said. ... This was the first drone attack after President Barack Obama announced the review of Afghan war on Thursday last. There had been more than 100 drone attacks in 2010, over double than last year’s total." (12/19/10)

"Five Palestinian militants were killed late Saturday night in an Israeli air strike in the centre of the Gaza strip. The Israeli military said in a statement that its aircraft '“targeted and identified hitting a squad of terror operatives who were preparing to launch rockets towards Israeli territory.' Palestinian sources confirmed that the dead men were members of the Islamic Jihad and Popular Resistance Committees militias." (12/20/10)

"Despite the horror with which the war party has received the WikiLeaks dump of secret diplomatic cables, at least some of the revelations were cheered. Those who have been agitating for an attack on Iran were pleased to see cables apparently reporting that the heads of Arab states also favor war." (12/17/10)

"Reports of violence are still scant following the Ashura observances, but at least eight Iraqis were wounded in at least three explosions in Baghdad. Meanwhile, the Electricity Ministry has opened bidding to foreign companies on four new power stations that could boost production. Last summer, the lack of electricity lead to riots in southern Iraq." (12/18/10)

"By now, almost all the likely outcomes of US strategy in Afghanistan are bad ones. They range from unending civil war, with government forces barely managing to hold their own against the Taliban, to de facto partition of the country. There is a chance that the Taliban would accept a settlement involving a timetable for the complete withdrawal of US forces and a neutral central government of respected Muslim figures, together with de facto Taliban control of the Pashtun heartland in the south and Western economic aid." (12/16/10)